I hope everyone is enjoying the summer sun and salt air. What a great summer it’s been! Just a few rainy days (see how quickly I forget June?) and so many beautiful summery nights (see how quickly I forget the dog days of July and the unbearable humidity?). Main Street Hyannis is hopping day and night. That is one thing I can’t forget!

I now travel from Plymouth to Provincetown for my new job as a wine sales rep. I’ve done it before, for many years, prior to owning Sea Street Market. I now realize that we have an absolutely beautiful downtown Main Street in Hyannis. The improvement is astounding in comparison to other town centers on Cape that haven’t yet begun the necessary revitalization of their economic centers. Our Main Street has its own flavor, its own heartbeat, its own personality studded by interesting and eclectic shops and restaurants. It’s especially palpable this time of year. Hats off to the merchants that make this possible!! You have done a fantastic job!

That said, I would like to share a priority of mine for the next two years. I will be looking at the homeless population and how it affects businesses and economic growth on Main Street. The job is only half done if we are feeding and clothing people. Shelter is needed all day in the heat and the cold. I believe that turning people out of the shelter every day at 7 a.m. is not solving the homeless problem, as I believe that it is not humane. It is not improving lives, it is merely allowing for the status quo.

In addition, we can no longer ask the business owners on Main Street to shoulder the responsibility of this issue. For years they have turned a blind eye, dealt with panhandling, offered coffee and shelter to those in need. They have also called police, complained and wondered why the town won’t step up to the problem. Shop owners and restaurateurs work immeasurable hours to be successful in their businesses. I believe we need to support them and their businesses by helping to solve the problem that has plagued Main Street for a very long time.

It is time that the Town Council looked (again) at a plan to provide the homeless with protection from the elements during the day. Victims of homelessness roaming the streets in the rain and winter cold will continue to be a reality if we don’t act to change it. We need to change it. In my mind’s eye, I envision a center with counseling and career opportunities, one that provides a ladder out of the shelter and a path back to employment and personal responsibility…one part-time job at a time. I look forward to finding support on the council (and beyond) to deal with this issue in the upcoming years.

I am pleased to announce the resurrection of the Human Services Committee, to which I am a Town Council liaison. We will meet each other for the first time on Aug. 12 to organize the committee. I am excited to see how the committee will prioritize the struggles that exist in Barnstable, and more excited to see how they plan to mitigate them. There is no shortage of fodder, that’s for sure. I know I have my short list of things that need to be addressed.

The foreclosed, abandoned and vacant property ordinance that Councilor Canedy and I are working on helps to address a major need in Barnstable: neglect by banks to properly secure and maintain the properties that they now own. We all know of certain properties that pull down the value of abutting parcels and houses. Whole neighborhoods can be affected if this problem is not addressed. This ordinance aims to constructively alleviate neighborhoods of unsightly and sometimes unsafe vacant, abandoned or foreclosed properties. We will be mindful of unintended circumstances, and I expect lively discussion in September at a workshop on the proposed ordinance. Nonetheless, I hope we will put it on the books before November.

I would like to take this opportunity to call for an end to vindictive comments and vitriol at the podium during public comment. It is one thing to disagree – but another entirely to personally attack others. What is the point of such diatribe, anyway? Is there an expectation that hundreds of residents will senselessly agree? Is there a hope that one will be perceived as a leader and will, in turn, have loyal disciples to share their inflammatory rhetoric? Maybe be in the running for an Oscar? Come on.

I’m well aware these antics reveal lack of credibility in the speaker. I would hope, however, that we all have more respect for each other than to stoop to such levels and ask the public to bear witness to such disrespectful and angry comments. I ran for Town Council initially to strengthen the fabric of our neighborhoods, to build trust in each other, not to tear down the town hall brick by brick and employee by employee.

I promise I will walk away from the dais every time this occurs. We share this town. We are working hard to make a stronger, safer and better community for our children to live in. We are working hard to defend it, to defend our citizens, to improve it, to repair it. This senseless negativity derails the mission of our town government. I won’t be a party to it. Criticism is patriotic, but this poison is not.

Instead, I would ask any and every concerned citizen to come to public comment to speak about relevant issues that affect your neighborhood, your village, your town. I want to hear your constructive criticism, your thoughts, your opinion. Please come and contribute. We want to hear your voice.

Thank you. Have a fantastic August. Make sure you catch a sunset, a beach day, and a basket of fried clams!